The 6511 Lionel pipe car from my childhood. It still looks "contemporary" (to me) 
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The 6468 B&O double door box car is my favorite also. I guess that's way I have 23 of them!!
Paul Edgar
23?? no wonder it took me so long to find one!
Liking all the choices above plus more, I would find it impossible to name a favorite even if I was tied to a chair and forced to listen to "Naughty Marietta" repeatedly (thanks, Woody). 
My favorite non operating cars would be the6418/6518 16 wheel depressed flat cars with the transformer or girder loads.
Also would be the 6414 auto-loader cars!
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Here's another favorite of mine. I picked it up at York in the mid 90s. It's from an uncatalogued Sears set circa 1964. Unfortunately, the tank load is frequently lost.....and this one is a replacement (the correct color tank is more green and not olive drab).
Peter
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The Sunoco 6465 2 dome tank car has always been my favorite since I was a kid.
Followed closely by the Lehigh Valley maroon hopper.
Jerry
A 3-way tie between three 6464's: the green & yellow Rutland, the 6464-25 Great
Northern in orange, and the 6464-900 New York Central in jade green.
Hoppy
Gotta be the Anniversary set. Looked for years for that set. Did NOT want to pay $1000 for the three car set and two 2023 Union Pacific Locos. While running trains at the Syracuse Train show ran across a table early on sunday morning that had the 3 car set. They were marked $150. Asked if they were $150 each, he said no $150 total for 3 cars. The cars were pretty beat. One roof was cracked. Asked if he would take $125, SOLD. Took them home. They cleaned up very nicely(except for the one cracked roof.
Ive been running them on my board ever since. AND I pull them with the Lionel 2023 Union Pacific Locos I already had in my engine house!!
For me, my personal favorite non-operating postwar car would be either the 6827 shovel or 6828 crane cars.
I have the 6828 crane also but I have it disassembled right now as I have to replace some parts on it.
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John....those are great choices!
Peter
The 6457 Deluxe caboose
Mike P
Best first, here's 5.
- The 3820 U.S.M.C. submarine car
- Evans Auto loader
- #6419 DL&W work caboose
- #2461 short metal fish belly transformer
- 6361 timber car
- (ok.. six)Orange & blue Baby Ruth.
Previously mentioned: 2530 large door baggage car. I almost got one at a small TCA meet years ago, but I was about 3 seconds late in getting my hands on the car and watched the guy ahead of me buy it for a really good price. That's my "the one that got away" story.
The car that best says "Lionel postwar" to me is the 1945-47 red metal caboose. This came with the set I got for Christmas in 1946. I have 3 of them, all lighted, with steps, and each a bit different from the others. Crazy as it may sound, this is my most loved train item.
My 2530 series passengers cars, definitely. Nothing like a string of those behind a Santa Fe F3 AB set For freight, probably the orange and brown NYC o27 boxcar that came with my first postwar set; i like the matte colors that went well behind my early 2026.
BoxCoupler,
Got to agree my original heavy Lionel gray 6500 full metal pipe flat car, with real pipe, made to run with the Tin Plate 2600 rolling stock has to be one of my favorite pieces of rolling stock, it is from a different era but seems to be timeless and fits with both modern post war and pre war trains.
PCRR/Dave
However there is a Pittsburgh original flat car that I like just as much, because my Grandfather and my father took me to lunch there as a young boy once a week, the flat car spurs serious memories for me. God the milk shakes & home made foods were so good there in the 50's. However my most favorite piece of rolling stock is not pictured, also a Pittsburgh original, the Billy Maz Box car, my Dads buddy Billy is the greatest 2nd Baseman in the history of Baseball, I went to college on a full ride because Billy Maz, Dick Groat and Pie Traner taught me how to play little league base ball in Swissvale, Pa on the old Dick Groat field. I only wish they would have made a Box Car for Dick Groat and Pie Traner also. IMO no piece of rooling stock even come close to that Box car. Some time I will take pictures of it, for the forum to see.
